Wow Bao to Build First Company-Operated Processing Plant in North Carolina

April 15, 2025

Maker of bao, potstickers and soup dumplings for retail and foodservice expects 90,000-sq.-ft. Forest City, N.C., manufacturing facility to start production in September 2025.

Andy Hanacek

Asian food company Wow Bao has announced it will build its first company-operated manufacturing facility in Forest City, N.C., investing $6.45 million and creating 88 jobs in the area, according to the office of North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein.

Wow Bao is a Chicago-based company founded 22 years ago as a fast-casual Asian-inspired restaurant brand, serving bao, potstickers and soup dumplings. The company has since expanded to offer its products in foodservice and retail locations nationwide. The new Forest City facility will allow it to increase production capacity, modernize operations and expand distribution capabilities as well, the release noted.

Construction on the facility has already begun, according to one news report citing Matt Fallon, CFO of Wow Bao, who added that the company was targeting September 2025 to begin production. The 90,000-sq.-ft. facility will be leased by Wow Bao, according to another news report, and it will cook, assemble and pack off bao and soup dumplings for retail customers.

“With a world-class workforce and vibrant food and beverage industry, it became clear that Forest City and the State of North Carolina were the perfect home for this exciting phase of Wow Bao’s expansion,” Fallon said in the state’s release. “We are excited to begin cooking up America’s Number One Bao in Forest City and shipping it out to the rest of the country.”

The company received a performance-based grant of $180,000 from the One North Carolina Fund for the project, which requires it to meet job creation and capital investment targets to qualify for the payment.

About the Author

Andy Hanacek | Senior Editor

Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.